报告题目： Thermogels for Biomedical Applications

报告人：Xian Jun Loh 教授/院长

报告时间：9月9日（星期三）下午15:00-17:00

线上腾讯会议 https://meeting.tencent.com/s/s9BliI5qR4Vx

ID：319 539 079  会议密码：468524

线下地点：长安校区启翔楼233会议室

邀请人：于海东 教授

报告摘要：

Thermogels are valuable soft materials for biomedical applications. At low temperatures, they remain as solutions which can be used to entrap therapeutic payloads such as drugs and proteins within their solvated polymer matrices. Upon injection into the body, higher body temperatures cause the solutions to gelate in situ at the site of injection, allowing localized placement for applications such as drug delivery. Herein, we present our three-component thermogelling polyurethane technology comprising of biocompatible polyethylene glycol (PEG), poly(propylene glycol) (PPG) and a third component, which can be poly(caprolactone) (PCL), poly(tetrahydrofuran) carbonate (PTHF) or poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate] (PHBHx), as a unique platform for biomedical applications. Our thermogels loaded with anticancer drugs were highly effective for inhibition of tumour growth in vivo using mice models. Docetaxel-loaded PEG-PPG-PHBHx thermogels showed enhanced anti-melanoma effects on solid melanoma tumours compared with the free drug, whilst exhibiting excellent biosafety and no apparent harm to organs. With doxorubicin-loaded PEG-PPG-PTHF thermogels, sustained drug release for 16 days in vivo successfully inhibited growth of hepatocellular carcinoma. Impressively, incorporating a dye capable of aggregation-induced emission into the polymer structure allowed it to be used to track in-vivo doxorubicin release status and gel degradation, revealing valuable insights on the drug transportation pathways. Recent efforts on PEG-PPG-PCL thermogels are concentrated on their unprecedented use in vitreoretinal surgery as a vitreous substitute and an internal tamponading agent. The thermogel showed long-term biocompatibility in rabbit vitrectomy models, and was an effective endotamponade in a non-human primate surgical retinal detachment model.  This is likely attributed to the thermogel providing support for the retina and preventing subsequent re-detachments. Intriguingly, there is reformation of a vitreous-like body that mimics the property of natural vitreous as the polymer biodegrades over three months. Thermogels offer vast scope for customizable tuning of their mechanical properties for various biomedical applications.

报告人简介：

Xian Jun Loh院长是一名生物材料跨学科领域的高分子化学家，是新加坡材料研究院院长、新加坡国家化学研究院副院长、英国皇家化学学会会士、全球高被引科学家。Xian Jun Loh院长的主要研究方向是应用于生物医学和健康领域的超分子、刺激响应聚合物和水凝胶的研发，迄今为止在生物材料领域发表了200余篇高水平学术论文、19项发明专利、45篇编著章节和6本学术专著。同时，Xian Jun Loh院长也是6家国际期刊编委会成员，多家重大基金组织资深顾问。